Hon. Justice Joyce A. O. Damachi of the Lagos Judicial Division of the National Industrial Court has ordered a Lagos Private School to pay Mrs Anniette the sum of N1.9m as gratuity, N2,000,000 as general damages, and N500,000 as cost of action, following the wrongful refusal of the School to pay Anniette’s terminal benefits after 27 years of service.
The Court held that where an employer and employee have consistently acted on the terms of a condition of service over a long period, the employer is estopped from denying its binding effect merely because the document was unsigned or unacknowledged.
From facts, the Claimant, Mrs Anniette submitted that she was employed by the School in 1992 as a teacher, and her appointment was confirmed in 1994. She served the school continuously for 27 years until her employment was terminated in November 2021.
Mrs Anniette contended that under the school’s Conditions of Service for teachers, staff who had served for 16 years and above were entitled to 100% of their basic salary and allowances as gratuity. She averred that despite repeated demands, the school refused to pay her gratuity upon termination.
Mrs Anniette further argued that the assertion of the school that gratuity had been discontinued in 2005 following the Pension Reform Act 2004 was false, as other staff who disengaged after 2005 were paid gratuity. She relied on documentary evidence showing payment of gratuity to her husband, a former staff member of the school.
In defence, the Lagos Private School argued that Mrs Anniette was not entitled to gratuity because she neither signed nor returned the Conditions of Service and that gratuity had been replaced by a contributory pension scheme.
The School also contended that the evidence relied upon by Mrs Ukpe amounted to hearsay and urged the Court to dismiss the case in its entirety.
In a well-considered judgment, Hon. Justice Joyce A. O. Damachi held that a contract of employment need not be signed to be binding where parties have acted on its terms over time.
The Court found that the Lagos Private School applied the Conditions of Service for over 26 years in paying salaries and regulating employment, and could not rescind from it solely to deny gratuity.
Justice Damachi held that the school failed to prove that gratuity was discontinued or that pension contributions replaced it, noting that the school could not selectively rely on parts of the Conditions of Service while rejecting others.
The Court refused the claim of Mrs Anniette for pre-judgment interest for lack of proof of any contractual or statutory basis, but ordered that all sums awarded must be paid within 30 days, failing which they shall attract 10% post-judgment interest per annum.
